Mrsnowgysport: Riyad Mahrez and Jamie Vardy shortlisted on the 2016 Ballon d'or

Leicester City’s Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez have been named on the 2016 Ballon d’Or award shortlist for the world’s best player.

Real Madrid’s Gareth Bale, Manchester United’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Paul Pogba, and Manchester City’s Kevin de Bruyne and Sergio Aguero also feature.

Other Premier League names on the list are West Ham midfielder Dimitri Payet and Tottenham goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.

Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo and Barcelona’s Lionel Messi are included.

Bale scored three goals as Wales reached the Euro 2016 semi-final and won the Champions League with Real alongside Ronaldo.

Pogba, Payet and Lloris are included after finishing runners-up with France to Ronaldo’s Portugal at Euro 2016.

Luis Suarez and Neymar are included alongside Barcelona team-mate Messi, the trio having scored 106 club goals combined in 2016.

France Football magazine revealed the 30-man shortlist on Monday.

Fifa ended its association with the award in September.

The prize has been awarded by France Football every year since 1956, but for the past six years it became the Fifa Ballon d’Or in association with world football’s governing body.

Five Premier League players – City’s Aguero, De Bruyne and Yaya Toure, Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez and Chelsea’s Eden Hazard – made a 23-man shortlist last year, with Bale the only British player on the list.

Ibrahimovic and Pogba were also included last time for their performances for Paris St-Germain and Juventus respectively.

The shortlist has traditionally been trimmed to three players before the awards evening in January.

2016 BALLON D’OR SHORTLIST

Sergio Aguero (Manchester City),

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Borussia Dortmund),

Gareth Bale (Real Madrid),

Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus),

Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid),

Kevin de Bruyne (Manchester City),

Paulo Dybala (Juventus),

Diego Godin (Atletico Madrid),

Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid),

Gonzalo Higuain (Juventus),

Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Manchester United),

Andres Iniesta (Barcelona),

Koke (Atletico Madrid),

Toni Kroos (Real Madrid),

Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)

, Hugo Lloris (Tottenham Hotspur),

Riyad Mahrez (Leicester City),

Lionel Messi (Barcelona),

Luka Modric (Real Madrid),

Thomas Muller (Bayern Munich),

Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich),

Neymar (Barcelona),

Dimitri Payet (West Ham),

Pepe (Real Madrid),

Paul Pogba (Manchester United),

Rui Patricio (Sporting Lisbon),

Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid),

Luis Suarez (Barcelona),

Jamie Vardy (Leicester City),

Arturo Vidal (Bayern Munich).

Mrsnowgysport :Neymar signs new 5 years contract

Neymar has signed a contract extension keeping him at the club until June 30, 2021 and also increasing his buyout clause to €222m next June and a year later rising to €250m.
He said "The players here are incredible and, from the outside, that intimidated me a bit before I joined.

"But as soon as I walked into the dressing room it was clear how down-to-earth they were," he went on. "I was really struck by that, and it helped me to settle in."

Mrsnowgys Sport: Can Munir be the man to deputize for MSN

Barcelona's attempts to add a fourth striker to their ranks has not been successful so far this summer. But the Catalans would be better off looking closer to home, as Munir El Haddadi continues to make a strong bid to be considered the 'fourth man' up front behind the all-conquering MSN. 
The La Masia graduate also understands his role in the team, and knows he would have to play the part of understudy for the coming season. No striker looks capable of unseating any member of the MSN, and as long as the South American trio are fit opportunities look set to be limited to stints off the bench and perhaps the odd appearance in the Copa del Rey. 

With Neymar gone all preseason, he has shown that he can be reliable source for the club when he is called upon.
The likes of Kevin Gameiro, Luciano Vietto and Gabriel Jesus were all put off by the prospect of not starting and playing from the bench, and chose other destinations in the current transfer window. Munir, however, holds Barcelona close to his heart, and if anyone is willing to stay at Camp Nou and attempt the impossible it is him. I wish him all the best in his decision on whether to stay or leave the club.

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